The State of Streaming Music

After years of hemorrhaging money from piracy, the music industry placed its faith in online subscription services like Spotify and Pandora. But a decade on, streaming music appears to be a triumph of hope over experience. Tim Carmody, senior writer for The Verge, says that streaming services and the music industry are clinging to the belief that profitability is ... just over the next hill.

I find offensive that Bob Garfield compares the "settlement" between streaming services and the music industry to the ongoing Israeli - Palestinian conflict. In doing so, he trivializes a historical tragedy, putting it on the same level as whether or not suburban teenagers are willing to pay an extra dollar or two for their favorite, ultimately forgettable and disposable music tracks. Think before you speak, Mr. Garfield.

Spotify, Pandora, the labels . . .they are all selling something they did not create. There is no Whole Foods without the farmer. There is so music streaming service or record label without an artist. We need to support the creators. Artists should be paid a fair price for their "product". Songs/performances, no matter how they are consumed, should be paid for. Why should only the middleman profit?

With regard to artists. I think artists should start accepting paypal donations. We play same MP3 for years and decades. Some of these long time listeners may simply want to make a donation because a song has been a refuge for so many years. I wanted to donate to few artists but there was no option on their site. But recently I came across one artist who has done exactly that (http://unwoman.com/)

As per streaming services, they cater to small section of online community that uses online=radio as 'primary' source. It is hard to make money by volume because base is small. If streamers increase the price, listeners may just leave. So I do not expect streamers to make money unless the majority of the public starts listening to radio through smart-phone(a restricted or locked down device compared to PC).